Chronophobia
by Ms. Marla
Summary: There are sometimes things that are scarier than spiders.  This is a collection of oneshot stories based upon different fears that plague the mind.  It features many different genres and relationships.
1. Chronophobia

_There are sometimes things that are scarier than spiders._

**Very important, please read:**

_A/N: Alright, hello everyone. Hopefully you're reading this, so you can be well informed. This is not a story. Rather it is a collection of short stories, each based upon a different phobia. As I stated in the summary, these stories will cover a variety of genres and relationships, so I think everyone will be pleased at one point or another. Because these are short stories rather than chapters, updates will not be as frequent as they are for my chaptered stories which, if you read them, you know that they are updated almost every day. But even though you may only get a new story once every week or so, please do not think I will forget this collection. I will continue writing it until I run out of ideas, in which case I will let you know. So, let's get right into it. Happy reading!_

_And, here's my infamous generic disclaimer; I don't own Artemis Fowl. Enough said. _

-x-x-x-x-

"_Time is free, but it's priceless. You can't own it, but you can use it. You can't keep it, but you can spend it. Once you've lost it, you can never get it back."_

_- Harvey MacKay _

-x-x-x-x-

**Chronophobia**

_The fear of time._

Time, such a trivial thing, yet so complex. It seemed to drag on forever when spent in unwanted ways, but could disappear in the blink of an eye. Artemis Fowl, sitting up in bed, knew better than anyone about lost time. It was, after all, only simple mathematics. Sixty seconds in a minute, thirty-six hundred in an hour, eighty-six thousand four hundred in a single day. How much time had Artemis lost in the span of three years? It was a worrisome calculation. One he would much rather not perform.

Artemis heaved a deep sigh, feeling an uncharacteristic lump in his throat. He had missed so much. What had been a day for him, had been three years for everyone else. It was incredible, if not terrible. Three years, and everyone had moved on, grown. Some had died, others were born. Artemis now had siblings; two twin brothers. The teenager smiled at the thought of the young Fowls. They were adorable and Artemis, who never was one for much affection, couldn't stop a warm smile from creeping up on his lips whenever he looked at the pair. He was secretly very thankful that the twins had come along. They had been a small beacon of light for Artemis Senior and Angeline in the tough times following their eldest and, at the time, only son's disappearance.

At that thought, Artemis felt a pang of guilt dwelling in his stomach. How could he have been so careless? How could he have been so wrong? The boy closed his mismatched eyes and when he reopened them, glanced at the clock resting on his bedside table. He blinked at the electric blue numbers, and noticed that during said blink, the minute had changed to signify midnight. Artemis sighed again. Another day gone, in what seemed like mere seconds.

"Just the blink of an eye," he muttered to himself, a rather sad tone present in his voice. Artemis slowly rose out of bed, not feeling the least bit fatigued, even at the late hour. He slipped on his navy blue robe, running his fingers over the crest embroidered on the breast pocket as he did so. The Fowl Family Crest, proud and unique. A family that Artemis was glad he had returned to.

Slowly and silently, Artemis crept out of his bedroom, careful that the door did not squeak as he opened and closed it. He wanted nothing less than to wake the twins or his parents. Butler, he need not worry about. The manservant, or rather ex-manservant, was taking a few days relaxation in the tiny cottage where Artemis had found him right after his return from Hybras.

Tonight, for some unknown reason, Artemis felt much more parched than he did tired, and owing to such a feeling, he stalked down the stairs, on his way to the kitchen. As he did so, Artemis passed by the ancient grandfather clock that sat just below the portrait of his great uncle, Sir Thomas L. Fowl. A slight smirk sprung upon the teenager's lips as he recalled just how that man had become knighted. It definitely was not thanks to completely legal actions.

However, Artemis' smirk disappeared quickly as his eyes fell away from the portrait and onto the clock just below. The face, framed by marvellous cherry wood, told him that it was barely five past midnight. Artemis frowned and then continued to make his way to the kitchen, his eyes reluctantly leaving the clock.

He reached the kitchen in mere moments, but did not put one foot inside. Instead, he leaned against the doorframe, apparently forgetting why he had gotten out of bed in the first place. The thought of a tall, cold glass of water had faded from his mind completely. He was consumed by thoughts of time.

Artemis was afraid to blink. He was afraid that if he let his guard down for one moment his life would return to it's whirlwind state, which had ultimately led up to the events of the time tunnel. He was afraid that if he took one second to blink he would miss another important event in his life, and the lives of his family. And with each passing second, Artemis became more afraid. He turned away from the kitchen, no longer thirsty; simply afraid.

"Perhaps I just need sleep," he mused out loud. The boy began to walk back to bed the same way he had come. Consequently, he passed the portrait of Thomas Fowl and that blasted grandfather clock. He stared at it for a moment before an almost crazy urge struck him. He longed to open up the face of every clock in Fowl Manor and rotate the hands backwards for three years worth of seconds, whatever disgustingly large number that may be. Of course he'd do the same for all of Holly's clocks, so as she wouldn't have missed three years of her life as he did. He'd even do the same for Minerva, just so she stayed out of all the trouble the demons had caused. However, he couldn't do such a thing, and he was forced to stare at the pendulum of the grandfather clock, rocking back and forth slowly, cruelly. The ticking seemed to hypnotise him, taunting him with all the time he had lost. With much difficulty, Artemis dragged his eyes away from the clock and wondered if there was anyone on Earth who felt the way he did right now. It didn't take very long for his incredibly intelligent mind to supply him with an answer. There was only one other who could possibly understand.

Artemis set off for his bedroom, this time at a rather brisk pace. And although he was moving much faster, he was careful not to make a sound. Once inside his bedroom, Artemis rummaged around on his night table for a moment, carefully avoiding looking at the clock. Finally, he found what he was looking for; an extremely lovely ring, which he proceeded to place on his finger. After a tiny bit of twisting, Artemis held his hand up to his ear, waiting for an answer.

Of course, he had called Holly Short, the only other being Artemis knew to have missed three years of her life due to being stuck in Limbo. One precious minute merged into the next before Holly answered the call. Artemis could tell, from the grogginess of her voice, that she had been sleeping.

"Holly, it's Artemis," he said after she had muttered a tired 'hello'. The boy heard movement on the other side of the call and figured that Holly must've sat up in bed.

"What do you want Artemis?" she asked, yawning, "It's so late. Shouldn't you be sleeping?"

"Yes," Artemis said, "But I can't sleep Holly. I'm…scared." The words had come out slowly. It was an odd sensation, admitting fear. It was something Artemis rarely did. Holly half-snorted.

"Bad dream?" she teased. Something in the back of Artemis' mind laughed happily. Holly could always make him feel better, whether it be in the face of starved trolls or a late night dilemma.

"Not quite," he replied, "I'm just afraid that time's going to run out before I have time to enjoy it. I'm afraid of missing things. I'm afraid that the world is going on and leaving me behind shouting for help, but no one's there."

There was silence. Artemis shook his head; sincerely hoping Holly had not fallen asleep again as he had spilled his feelings out. However, the silence turned out to be a thoughtful one, as Holly spoke again quite soon.

"Artemis," she said softly, "I know how you feel. I mean, I've missed so much. Foaly and Caballine got married. I missed one of my best friend's weddings. He told me that he held off the marriage for a year and a half, because he wanted me to be there. I let him down. Trouble became Commander and the LEP are much better off. There are a few more female officers now too. I feel like I've been left behind, sleeping for three years."

"What do we do Holly?" Artemis' voice was laced with helplessness, something that almost never happened.

"I guess we adjust," the elf said, "Try the best we can."

"I suppose."

Another silence fell. Artemis heard Holly let out a large yawn and suddenly felt extremely guilty over waking her up. No doubt, she had been through a lot since they returned. All Artemis had to do was adjust. Holly probably had endless forms to fill out. She probably hadn't had a good sleep in ages. The boy smiled, and even though Holly couldn't see it, the smile was meant for her.

"I'll let you go Holly," he muttered, "You sound exhausted."

"Great observation genius," Holly retorted. Artemis chuckled. Even when she was tired, her sarcastic manner was as sharp as a blade.

"Sleep well Holly," the teenager said. 

"You too," she said, "And Artemis?" 

"Yes?"

"If you ever need to talk…" 

"I know," he said. Artemis and Holly said goodnight one final time and the connection was broken. The teenager didn't bother taking off the ring. It comforted him knowing that someone understood him, and that someone would never be too far away. After taking off his robe, Artemis crawled back into bed and squirmed around for a few seconds, trying hard to find a comfortable spot. Once he did he rested his head on his pillow and closed his eyes.

Artemis Fowl fell asleep with a small grin playing about his lips. Some things, not even time could change.

-x-x-x-x-

_A/N: Well, I hope you enjoyed that. It was pretty difficult for me to get the right concept. I really hope that it was well done. Please review and let me know what you think. And also, let me know if you'd like another one. Awesome, thanks so much. Cheers!_

_-Liv xoxo_


	2. Philophobia

_A/N: Alright, thanks to all of you who reviewed. Just a quick note before we begin. I was originally planning for this second instalment of the series to be a romance between Holly and Artemis, but I'm having a very difficult time with the concept, especially considering the phobia it is centered upon. So I decided to go with what was supposed to be the third in the series. Now, for all of you, who enjoy the Holly/Artemis pairing; please don't hate me because this specific story is Holly/Trouble. And please don't stop reading, because I promise that as soon as I can make it perfect, I'll have an Artemis/Holly for all you folks. So, a little challenge, just so I can get your reviews, teehee. I said I was having a difficult time dreaming up a concept for that certain Holly/Artemis-centric phobia. Any guesses as to what it could possibly be? One hint; it starts with the letter 'M'. Post your guesses with your reviews. The first person, if anyone, who gets it right can tell me what to do, as in they get to chose any phobia and any characters, and I'll write a story and dedicate it to them. Yeah, I know, crummy prize, but I can't exactly afford to hand out a million dollar cheque. Anyways, here's the next instalment, enjoy!_

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"_To the world, you may be just one person. But to one person, you may be the world."_

_-Unknown_

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**Philophobia**

_The fear of falling in love_

Dread was not a very nice word. It seemed dangerous, almost lethal. And fear? Fear was just as bad, if not worse. It rang with defeat and helplessness. Both were emotions Holly Short could not remember feeling in ages. And yet, as her mind raced to decipher what she was feeling as she walked down the crowded corridor of Police Plaza, both unwelcome emotions continued to present themselves as an answer. But what exactly was she dreading? What exactly could scare Holly Short? She wasn't supposed to feel fear, not as a trained LEP operative.

The elf turned a corner sharply and headed through a large steel door, finding herself at the top of a staircase. There she stood, unmoving, thinking, and confused. Holly bit her lip and took a seat on the topmost stair, resting her elbows on her knees, and her head in her hands. Her meeting could wait. Her personal sanity was a much more pressing matter.

Holly breathed in deep at the thought of her meeting. Of course it was said meeting that was sending her into the depths of emotional turmoil. Holly glared down to the bottom of the stairwell, thinking long and hard about the man she was going to see. It wasn't Julius Root. No, that she could handle. A meeting with Commander Root was a simple matter of preparing a mental block for all his yelling. And of course, since earplugs weren't allowed, having a coffee waiting for you, back in your own cubicle helped to kill the headache. But today, Holly was not meeting with her Commander. Rather, she was on her way down to see Retrieval Captain Kelp. And what did Kelp want with her? Well she wasn't entirely sure. The entire means of invite had been very sketchy.

Holly reached into the pocket of her jumpsuit and pulled out a piece of yellow paper. Scrawled across the memo, in Trouble's handwriting, was a short message.

_Holly, be in my office at 2:15 today._

That was all. That and the Captain's signature. Holly glanced at the paper once more before her nerves got the better of her and she tore it up into tiny pieces. After she had finished her destruction, Holly looked down at the remnants of the note, which she held in one hand, and placed the shreds of paper back in her pocket. A quarter past two was quickly approaching, and yet Holly did not want to move an inch. This was exactly what she was afraid of. Trouble Kelp.

Holly groaned and placed her head back in her hands. Truth be told, she had developed quite the crush on Trouble. Captain Short nearly laughed at herself as she thought about the absurdity of it all. Crush; it sounded so school girl, so immature. Of course, she was not nearly as immature as many of the other LEP females who seemed to swoon over Trouble just because he was handsome.

No, Holly's swooning had good reason. Trouble and she were good friends; they had been since their days at the Academy. Trouble was fun to be around and made for great conversation; of course being handsome was just a bonus.

But even so, if one could catch a glimpse past the auburn hair, and into Holly's brain, they would be extremely confused by the battle her brain was waging. Her logic half kept telling her she was stupid to be afraid. After all, she and Trouble had hung out before and never, ever had she felt so nervous.

However, it was not Trouble that frightened her, not completely. It was the note. The one she had just annihilated. Why did Trouble want to see her? It was definitely no emergency, which probably meant no adventure to be had. So what did he want from her. Holly stood up slowly, defiantly. It was time to find out. Time to face her fears.

Minutes later, she stood outside Captain Kelp's office, debating whether or not she should knock or just walk away. Finally her decision was made, and she placed her hand up to the door. As she did, it swung open, even before she knocked. It took a great deal of reflexes not to tap on Trouble's face as she had been about to do to the door. 

At the sight of Holly, Trouble's lips curled upwards and he invited her in. The female entered, took a seat, and glanced up at the clock. She was fifteen minutes late. Silently, she fumed over her tiny break on the stairs. Behind her, Trouble closed the door and laughed. Holly turned around, fixing him with a cool glare.

"You're late," Trouble chuckled. He walked over to the other side of the desk and sat, facing Holly. For a long moment neither said anything. Holly's brain was racing with thoughts. There was one certain thought she tried to push away, _the office is no place for romance_, but it seemed to keep swimming to the top of all other thoughts.

"Sorry," she muttered finally.

"No problem," Trouble smiled. Another awkward silence followed. Holly wanted nothing more than to get up and leave, but that would be just plain weird.

"So," she said nonchalantly, "You wanted to see me." She nearly made a move to take the note from her pocket, to show Trouble she had received it, but she thankfully remembered it had been ripped to a pulp.

"I did," Trouble replied. He seemed nervous. Holly wasn't sure if that was supposed to calm her or wear down her nerves even more.

"About?"

At her question, a third silence fell. Holly felt rather uncomfortable as Trouble glanced everywhere around the room, his eyes resting on everything except Holly.

"Sir?" Her tone was careful. Amazing as it was, Trouble seemed more terrified than she did.

"Look Short," he blurted out, "I mean…Holly. Sorry. D'arvit."

Holly knew exactly where this was going. She wanted to crawl under his desk and die. She couldn't say no. It was Trouble Kelp. But she couldn't say yes either. He was her colleague. And the office was no place for romance.

"Holly," Trouble continued, "I would like to know if I could possibly take you out to dinner one evening." And although she had been expecting such a question, Holly couldn't help her eyes from growing to an abnormally large size. She looked up at her fellow Captain, who seemed to have turned a deep shade of crimson.

"Trouble…I…I'm flattered, really," she said. The Captain looked at her, dismay all over his attractive features.

"But?" he asked, "There's always a but."

"But," Holly nodded, "We work together. I can't date you. It's not you, though. I really like you."

"Holly…" 

She interrupted Trouble with a firm shake of her head.

"If I wasn't in the LEP," she told him, "If I wasn't, then it would be so much easier. But I'm a test-case Trouble. You know that. You know that the Council is watching every move I make. I have to be strong. I can't let them see any weakness. If I date you, they'll think that I'm just getting in the way. They'll somehow manage to twist our story around to wrongly prove that female officers are just a distraction to the well-trained males. I'm sorry Trouble."

Trouble bit his lip and looked up at Holly. A stray tear had made its way down her cheek. He smiled at her, a deep genuine smile. And then, Trouble stood up and walked over to Holly. He leaned down and embraced her tightly. To his great content, her arms wrapped around his neck and her head rested on his shoulder.

"You don't have to be afraid of what they think Holly," he whispered in her ear. Holly said nothing in return, but she didn't move away from him. He continued to hold her close. There was not a sound in the room, save their soft breathing and the ticking of the clock. Trouble looked lovingly at the girl in his arms. She had been trained to numb her emotions. She had been trained that love was for the weak. It was installed in her that fear was for the faint of heart. Trouble had felt like that once, but had changed after spending time away from work with Holly. She had saved him once, and now he was repaying the favour.

"Just one dinner," he repeated, "Tonight, my place. Apparently, I'm a good cook." 

Holly snorted and pulled away from Trouble, looking at him happily.

"I'll be there," she smiled.

-x-x-x-x-

_A/N: Alright, hoping that isn't as cheesy as I think it is. I tried to keep Holly in character, but I think it was a pretty miserable attempt. Please review and let me know your opinion, and remember my little challenge. Oh yeah, and although you probably drew the conclusion, this was set before The Opal Deception. Cheers!_

_-Liv xoxo_


	3. Cacophobia

_A/N: Alright guys, great guesses about the 'M' phobia. Julienne Potato was the first to guess the correct answer which was Mnemophobia, the fear of memories. So, if she'd like to claim her prize, that'd be awesome. However, I am very open to suggestions if any of you have anything in particular you want. Feel free to ask. Also, I'm still working on Mnemophobia, so it won't be up just yet. Anyways, on with the show!_

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"_Only in relation to our imagination can things be called beautiful or ugly." _

_-Baruch Spinoza_

-x-x-x-x-

**Cacophobia **

_The fear of ugliness_

She stared at the girl with a deep, murderous glare. Her eyes were narrowed with disgust, never once leaving the girl's face. And then, she spoke softly.

Because she regretted having to hate this girl so much.

"You'll never be beautiful again," she hissed, words spat from her mouth as if they were lethal. And, to her complete lack of surprise, the girl hissed those exact same words back, glaring with just as much disgust.

Because we only see one thing in a mirror.

This was her punishment. To be locked away for eternity was nothing. A life sentence ended in death. And death came soon enough. But they locked her away with a mirror.

Because they knew she would loathe it.

The mirror was thrown against the wall of her tiny cell, meeting its demise, shattering into a thousand pieces of fragile glass. She felt as though her soul shattered in that very moment.

Because the mirror had always been a part of her.

But it was gone, and she thanked Frond for that. It served only as a reminder of her failure. She had let down the one person whose opinion mattered more than her own. She had failed Mother. Mother was beautiful. Mother was exquisite. Mother had been let down. 

Because the last thing she had said to her daughter was "Always be beautiful Opal."

And now, Opal was no longer beautiful. She no longer deserved to be named after one of the most precious gems known to Earth. Her chocolate eyes were deep with troubles, her gaze forever spiralling into a black abyss of nothingness.

Because she no longer had anything worth looking at.

Her raven hair was tangled and matted, hanging in a sheet around her no longer radiating, no longer fair face.

Because she no longer cared.

All she was was an image. One of fallen grace. One of wasted splendour. Her tiny hands, cracked from dryness, balled into fists as tears leaked down her cheeks, leaving streaks where dirt and dust had been moments earlier.

Because she lost the one and only thing that had ever mattered.

And Opal cried. Tears of hatred and sorrow escaped from her body.

Because she was now the one thing she had always feared.

And Opal screamed. A terrible shriek, emitted from her frail body.

Because insanity is not beautiful.

-x-x-x-x-

_A/N: Shorter than the others, I know. But I think it accomplished what I wanted it to. Please review! Cheers!_

_-Liv xoxo_


	4. Atychiphobia

_A/N: Alright, so time for an update. Before we begin I just want to say that this particular instalment is dedicated to Julienne Potato, not only for winning the 'M' phobia contest, but for providing me with the wondrous idea. I was originally going to make this phobia into an Artemis-centric story, but after Julienne suggested using Butler, I could not believe how many ideas began to form in my mind; so thank you very much. Also, one of the reasons I wrote this series is to experiment with different styles and characters and such, so this instalment is not exactly my normal style. It's a series of exactly 100 word drabbles. Hope you enjoy! _

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"_There is suffering in life. And there are defeats. No one can avoid them." _

_-Paulo Coelho_

-x-x-x-x-

**Atychiphobia**

_The fear of failure_

**4 years**

Silence. It was a state of being that the boy had long since grown accustomed to. Words were for the weak. Papa had told him that, without ever once uttering a single syllable. It was his dream to grow up to be like Papa; strong and majestic, instilling fear in all. But the boy knew, deep down, that there was ever such a fine line between dreams and nightmares. A line easily crossed.

Still, he remained silent, never crying, rarely speaking. To be like Papa was worth anything, even his own voice. Speaking was a failure. Especially for a Butler.

**6 years**

He wasn't allowed to go to school as a regular boy. Not that he wanted to. Whenever he was out with Mama, his impressive stature earned him many odd glances and contemptuous stares. School, he told himself, would be much worse than the shopping market.

And yet he watched, with an almost hungry look, when the children walked past his home, returning from school. They would whisper and laugh amongst themselves, enjoying something that the boy knew he couldn't. Friendship; the sharing of secrets and heartfelt moments. But friends could become enemies. Friendship was, therefore, failing. Especially for a Butler.

**10 years**

He was greatly impressed with Madame Ko's training camp. Never had he seen such discipline, such morals. The boy would like it here. His training was intense and, many times, he almost gave up.

Some nights, the boy would stare at the peak of the tent, restless and unable to sleep, wondering whether or not his future would be mingled with that of a Fowl heir. The days following his late night thoughts would be full of consequence as the drowsy boy attempted to complete near impossible tasks. But he always pulled through.

Failure was unacceptable. Especially for a Butler.

**18 years**

His teeth gnawed at the mint gum, almost subconsciously, as he thought of the task at hand. Today was the day he received his blue diamond. Hopefully. He tried to keep himself focused on something other than the thousand things that could go wrong.

A man entered his tent, dressed in a white robe. _It is time._

The young man nodded once and swallowed his gum. He stood, ready for the greatest test he would ever face. Stepping out into the bright sunlight, away from the dark tent, his mind felt renewed.

He would not fail. He was a Butler.

**20 years**

Dressed in black, he watched as Papa was slowly lowered into the ground. Beside him stood Mama, now six months pregnant, weeping into a handkerchief. He placed a large hand on her shoulder and squeezed gently. Mama could cry. He could not. Crying would be failing. And even though Papa could no longer see him, the boy was still afraid to fail. He stood, still and stone-faced, willing his emotions away. Never would he let anything as trivial as sorrow stand in his way.

No, hiding emotion was winning. And he would do nothing but win. He was a Butler.

**23 years**

He heard of his sister's birth and wasn't sure what to feel, if he should even feel for that matter. Papa was no longer alive to teach the girl, and the toddler was left in the hands of her big brother. He tried to be as strict as Papa, but his attempts flew right out the window as the young girl spoke her first word.

_Domievoid_

Not exactly intelligent conversation, but his name nonetheless. His heart swelled every time she looked at him with her innocent eyes. He smiled at her. Not doing so would be failing. Butlers never failed.

**25 years**

He was whisked away from his normal life, if normal could ever have been used to describe his life. It was off to Ireland for the handsome young man. His job was to protect the newest member of the Fowl clan; Artemis Junior.

One look at the boy and the bodyguard could sense that the rest of his life would be full of surprises and most of them would have some sort of illegal twist to them. He blinked at the child and his proud parents. His mask was back. He would not fail the Fowls. Not as a Butler.

**33 years**

The last eight years had been anything but average. He currently sat in the study at Fowl Manor, his eyes fixed on Artemis whilst watching every nook and cranny in the room. The boy was combing over the blueprints of his home, a clever smile upon his lips.

_I think that the cellar would make a marvellous prison cell Butler._

He had laughed at that. Such an odd child. And yet, he trusted this child more than anyone else on the planet. The man felt a friendly love for his charge, but worked to suppress it. Butler's weren't supposed to feel.

**37 years**

Fairies. Perhaps Master Fowl had finally lost it. There he sat, just outside his jeep, watching out for some little creature that no one, save Artemis, knew existed. He was wet. This was ridiculous. And yet, something about Artemis' calm mannerisms helped to assure him that maybe there was more to the world than met the eye. They had been staked out for months, and still Artemis had not given up hope. He had taken a leaf from his bodyguard's book. Said bodyguard felt a lump of pride in his throat and quickly swallowed it. Pride was dangerous for Butlers.

**38 years**

It had been terrifying. It had been the first time he felt true pity. Captain Short had lost her trigger finger, with next to no hope of reattaching it, even by magic. But somehow, by some miracle, they had saved her. The first thing she did when coming around: punch the 'Mud Boy'.

He had nearly reacted and drawn his weapon. It was reflex. But he decided against it and instead, chuckled in his mind. Of course he couldn't chuckle out loud. It would show others his weakness. And he wasn't supposed to have a weakness. He was a Butler.

**40 years**

He saw the gun, level with Artemis' chest and time seemed to stop. All the moments spent with his charge flashed through his brain. The fairy stakeout, the troll, the goblin revolution, the Arctic rescue mission, the business meeting with Jon Spiro…which had turned into this disaster.

Basic instinct kicked in, the man jumping in front of the heir, knowing that the pulsing in his brain would stop in moments. He could see the trail of heat left by the speeding bullet.

It hit him square in the chest. He may have failed, but he was still quite the Butler.

-x-x-x-x-

_A/N: Okay, upon reading this over, I realize that drabbles are not my writing style. I hope you didn't find that terrible. Please review and constructive criticism of my drabble-attempts is welcome. Cheers!  
_

_  
-Liv xoxo_


	5. Mnemophobia

_A/N: Hey guys! Sorry it's taken so long, but here's the next little addition to the series. This one is more my style, like a structured storyline. I hope you enjoy!_

-x-x-x-x-

"_Some memories are realities, and are better than anything that can ever happen to one ever again."_

_-Willa Cather_

-x-x-x-x-

**Mnemophobia**

_The fear of memories_

It was the Saturday following the mindwipe of Artemis Fowl, and a certain fiery elf lay in bed, eyes closed tightly. Commander Root had given Holly the day off to; as he put it, recover from the Spiro assignment. In other words, it was time for her get her act together and forget about the Mud Boy. That was easier said than done.

Thinking about Artemis upset Holly. Not thinking about him made things even worse. She hated the fact that the boy's pale face was stuck on her mind and he had no idea she existed. It was an unfair irony. Holly opened her eyes and stared up at the stark white ceiling, not knowing what to do with her day off. Perhaps she would just stay in bed all day, tossing and turning, and attempting to forget Fowl. Yes, that was a good idea. And that was her plan of action.

That is, until she received an urgent call from her centaur friend Foaly, urging her to get her butt out of bed and down to Police Plaza. And so, half an hour later, after reluctantly getting out of bed, Holly stood outside the Ops Booth, a practised scowl on her face, a carrot in her pocket. She knocked on the door and Foaly's bright face appeared within seconds, allowing her to enter.

"Someone looks cheery," he commented as she took a seat on the far right side of his office. Holly shot her scowl in his direction and Foaly laughed.

"It's supposed to be my day off," she muttered darkly, "But since you so lovingly decided to bother me, I brought you a little present."

"Oh, you shouldn't have," Foaly said cheerfully, looking Holly up and down, "What is it?"

Holly reached into her pocket and pulled out the carrot. But instead of handing it to the centaur, she threw it at his head. Foaly, never much of an athlete, failed to catch it, and the carrot met with his left ear. He whinnied indignantly as Holly chuckled.

"I didn't do anything to deserve that," he said.

"I know," Holly nodded patronizingly, "Calling me here when I could be sleeping is nothing at all."

"One," Foaly began counting on his fingers, "You hate taking days off. Two, I doubt you were sleeping. And three, you won't be disappointed you came."

"And why is that?" Holly asked.

"Because of this," Foaly replied knowingly, pulling a silver disc off his desk, holding it up to Holly's eyes. The elf was unimpressed.

"Oh wow," she mumbled sarcastically, "A disc. You've really outdone yourself this time Foaly."

"Really funny Holly," said the centaur, "But I think it's the contents of said disc that will interest you."

"Okay," Holly held up in her hands in mock surrender, "You got me. What's on the disc?"

"A special Mud mind," Foaly answered, "The memories we took from Fowl."

Holly's breath caught in her throat and her heart skipped a beat. In his hands, Foaly held the stolen thoughts of Artemis Fowl. Without thinking, she held out her tiny hand. Foaly smiled perceptively.

"I thought you'd like that," he said, dropping the disc into Holly's outstretched hand, "You can put it in that computer over there," he pointed, "And when the main menu appears, use the search function. I'll leave you two alone now."

Without another word, the centaur left his somewhat cramped booth, munching on the carrot that had been used as a weapon against him only moments earlier. Holly was alone, save for the disc of memories she now held in her trembling hand.

She carefully inserted the disc into the proper drive on the computer Foaly had pointed out. In an instant, the screen turned to a brilliant blue colour, with eighteen tiny bubbles, each one representing a month that they had stolen from Artemis. At the bottom of the screen, there was a tiny box with a blinking cursor – the search function.

With shaky fingers, Holly began to type, letter by letter, slowly, into the text box. _Holly Short._ She pressed enter and waited mere seconds before over two dozen tiny bubbles appeared on the blue background. Each had a name underneath, what Artemis had called the event in his mind.

She saw titles such as _The Kidnapping, The Golden Favour, The Radioactive Train, Beating Opal Koboi, Butler's Near-Death Experience, The Spiro Needle, _and so on and so forth. Holly stared at the screen, gazing over all the pilfered moments of the teenager's life, not sure which one she wanted to watch first, if she wanted to watch at all. As her eyes travelled down the screen, she caught sight of a tiny bubble, right towards the end of Artemis' time with the fairies. It was entitled _My Real Thoughts on Captain Short._

It was the sight of this bubble that caused Holly to get up and leave. What she was doing was wrong. Artemis' memories were his own, even if he didn't remember them. She left the Ops Booth, without even bothering to leave Foaly a note saying goodbye. Holly headed straight home, spending the rest of the day in bed, her mood bordering on extremely miserable.

Not even ten minutes after her departure, Foaly strolled back into the Ops Booth leisurely. He noticed two things. Holly was missing. And she had left the disc running. Foaly trotted over to the computer and surveyed the screen. He noticed the many memories of Artemis Fowl concerning his favourite Recon captain, but one in particular grabbed his attention. The same one that, unknown to him, had made Holly leave without an explanation.

Foaly clicked the tiny bubble, not entirely sure what to expect. In moments, he was watching the world through Artemis Fowl's eyes. He appeared to be staring up at the ceiling of his bedroom, blinking at a slow pace, as if falling asleep. Suddenly, the computer emitted a voice. Artemis was speaking to himself, inwardly of course, and his voice served as the narration of this memory.

_Tomorrow, I won't even know Holly. It seems like just yesterday we met, but I'm already losing her. Perhaps I shouldn't even be thinking this, as Foaly will no doubt go through my mind, find it, and show it to Holly. That would be quite embarrassing, for the both of us. _

_I wish I were better with matters of the heart. Sadly, that's always been a weakness of mine. And although I have not admitted it, I have a sneaking suspicion that Holly already knows. She knows me better than anyone, except perhaps Butler. But there is one thing that she may never know. I wonder, perhaps, if I should tell her how I really feel. Of course, it would make our separation so much more difficult. For her, that is. I will not remember her smiling face or stunning eyes in twenty-four hours. But she, she will recall everything from our first meeting to our final goodbyes. And I will not have our final moment together be full of more heartache than necessary. _

_There are some things that are meant to stay inside forever. And my love for Holly is one of those things. Still…I can't help but to wonder what…_

Foaly exited the program right away, his throat dry. This was unbelievable. This was a startling development. This…was great teasing material.

-x-x-x-x-

_A/N: Blah! I tried to make it as cute as I could, but I think I failed miserably, somewhere in the middle. Oh well, hope it wasn't all that bad. I'll try my hand at another A/H sometime soon. Review please. Cheers!_

_-Liv xoxo _


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